Far away, in the neighboring kingdom of Wigginsvin, a woman was in a building. She was only thirty years old. She was still young, pretty, and timid. She backed away from the glaring, tall soldier, and bit her lip.

“Please, sir, I didn’t do nothing. I-I was only washing dishes, sir, a-an I never stole anything, sir, or hurt anyone.” Her high voice was very faint, permeated by a soft country accent. Her brown hair was falling out of its bun, and her hands, still covered with suds from her dishwashing, shook pitifully. The soldier was wearing the king’s crest, and approached her with a grim expression.

“You have been identified as a criminal, ma’am. I must take you to the castle. There you will see the King and be put on trial. Now, come.”

The woman shook her head, her eyes filling with tears.

“I ain’t a criminal, sir, I beg of you, please don’t take me to prison!”

“You aren’t going to prison yet, come now and you will receive a fair trial.”

The woman darted. She ducked past the heavy guard, and ran out the open door. She kicked the soldier’s horse so that it bolted down the road, then took off and hid behind the shed, peering around the corner. The soldier ran out of the building, saw the horse growing smaller in the distance, and, assuming she had stolen it and was riding away, sped after it down the road, hollering and waving his arms. The woman breathed a long sigh and leaned against the rough, wooden shed. She felt hopeless. The soldier would soon return on his horse and search the place. She had to leave, but she would be hunted down.

She gathered her wits about her and scurried into the house,  snatching what little food she could find. She put her three gold coins in her apron pocket, and left the back way. She had no horse, so she ran. She ran across the field back of the building into the woods, hoping nobody had seen her leave. She ran as far as she could, into the middle of the forest, before collapsing from mere exhaustion. Night was coming, and she might as well sleep. She took hold of a knobby tree and climbed it as high as she safely could. Her childhood on her family’s farm had made her an expert tree climber. She then rested in the nook of the branches and took from her pocket the only other thing she had managed to grab before she left. It was a white handkerchief, turned yellow with age. In the middle was embroidered a big orange marigold.

The rain came pouring down in torrents. Fidledom in autumn was no joke. It rained nearly every other day, and most times, it did more than rain. The rain didn’t just rain, it fell in heavy sheets and beat mercilessly against anything in it’s path. Autumn flowers were beat apart and scattered by the rain, and if a small animal were to get caught in a shower, well…

Lyman was in the rain. He had left Prunella’s cottage, after paying for the repair of her door. The rain had come without warning, and Lyman was now riding through it at a terrific speed. He had left one of the horses he had “borrowed” with Prunella, and was no longer burdened with both. The fine brown stallion was muscular and quick, but even it was wearing down. Lyman had to make it to the nearest establishment, to stop for the night and groom his horse. He spied a fine looking inn up ahead, and urged the soaking horse onward. He arrived at the inn, pulled his horse into the comfortable stable, and paid the stable boy to attend to it. 

“Welcome to Mousehole Inn! Warm yourself by the fire, I’ll have you some hot stew in just a jiffy!” 

The jolly round man at the counter nodded, smiled, and went to get the stew. Lyman didn’t like to remove his hood in public, but his cloak was soaking wet. He shed his cloak and sat down near the warm blazing fire. Lyman was used to life as a bounty hunter, and unconsciously observed the people and places around him, wherever he was. 

As he analyzed the crowd in the noisy inn, he noted a tall, broad soldier wearing the king’s (long may He reign) crest. This was unusual, as soldiers usually stopped at specialized places, not often appearing in public. The soldier was talking in a low voice to what looked like a bounty hunter. They sat at a table in a secluded corner.

Lyman stood, and meandered nearer to the two men to eat his soup. He stopped and leaned casually against a wall, as if utterly absorbed in his stew.

“She ran off, fooled me right well with the horse trick. By the time I got back she was gone. Probably escaped to the woods. Too late to go after her.” The soldier shook his head as he spoke. 

“What did you do?” Asked the other man.

“Put up posters and a reward upon her return to the castle. I was ordered to, though I suspected it wouldn’t help. That’s why I’m hiring you.”

The soldier proceeded to pull out a poster and nail it on the posting wall of the inn. He gave another copy to the bounty hunter, and Lyman watched with interest as coins were exchanged. It was unusual to hear of a woman on a wanted poster.

Lyman shook away these thoughts and looked again. The bounty hunter was gone, leaving the soldier alone. Lyman retrieved his cloak, pulled his hood over his eyes, and sat down at the soldier’s table. 

“Hello. I couldn’t help hearing what you said to that man. Got curious…don’t often hunt for women.” 

The soldier laughed and shook Lyman’s hand. “That’s right! She’s a sly little thing, looks so innocent you’d hardly believe she stole a jewel from the king’s own crown, long may He reign. So, you want the job? I’ve already hired that man you saw, but he’s and amateur. Now, if i could get someone like you to go after her! That’d be swell.”

Lyman laughed and took off his hood. The soldier’s reaction was comical.

“The Green Bean! Why, I’ll hire you on the spot! Eleven coppers in advance. Here’s a copy.”

Lyman received the money and the poster. He inspected the poster critically and looked up, saying, “What’s this? There’s no name! And no drawing!”

It was true. The poster contained only a small amount of information:

‘WANTED, ALIVE

A young woman who’s name is unknown. She has brown hair. She is wanted for the following crime: Suspected robbery of the topaz, third from the left of the center ruby, on the King’s (long may He reign) crown. She was last seen in Wigginsvin. 65,000 gold upon capture and delivery of this woman to The Wigginsvin Castle.

The soldier shrugged. 

“That’s why I’ve hired you.”